Ammonia & Feeding

[wetfishies]

Can I feed my fish with high ammonia?

My story is. I have had sky high PH and with partial water changes the PH have not lowered at all.
My ni-TRATES was also very high for a while, but have lowered recently.
My NI-TRITES have been beautiful. they went up a little after I added the new gravel, But came back to zero after I added some plants & a moss ball.

I was told that in time white gravel can cause high PH & until you remove it the PH will not go down. Well I went out and bought new gravel not the tiny colored gravel, I got the real looking small rock gravel. anyways since I added it. my ammonia is high & i have never had high ammonia,

My ni-TRATES are raising again, not that they went ALL away from before, but they had lowered. now my PH is higher then the test results show. seems like after I added some ammonia neutralizer my ammonia & ni-TRATES went up. Is that a possibility? My fish are in the tank & I was not told to take the fish out when adding new gravel. I have been doing a lot of partial water changes my last water change when I added the gravel was like 3/4 of the tank. I want to feed them but I don`t want to damage the water any worse then it is. The ni-TRATES was the starting cause of me trying to fix the tank,then the PH was sky high and never lowered. I have the API freshwater master test kit. My Ph reads darker then the 7.6 The ammonia reads 1.0 ppm. the ni-TRITE reads 0 ppm. & the ni-TRATE reads 20. ppm If any advice I would greatly appreciate the help

 

[ZcarFR-S]

Have you recently changed filter media? Sound almost like a recycling of the tank. As for the ph I am not sure if the gravel would have changed it that much. Driftwood can naturally lower your ph safely. I would keep up with the water changes and look at your buffering capacity. If you have hard water you will typically have higher ph. If you have soft water you will typically have lower ph.


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[nessalang]

Most fish are not especially sensitive to pH as long as they are allowed to acclimate gradually. My area has very hard tap water (pH is nearly 8.4) but I've still been able to successfully keep neons and cardinals. When you changed your gravel you removed most of your biological filter, which is the reason for the ammonia and nitrite you were measuring. While you do have some ammonia right now, 1ppm won't cause fish death, and stress from ammonia can be alleviated by adding aeration if you have it. If you didn't add all new tank water when you changed the gravel you probably had some residual nitrates in the old aquarium water, which would explain the strange test results. I would definitely recommend adding a bacterial supplement like API QuickStart/Dr Tim's one and only/ searched stability to quickly add back those good bacteria and reestablish your biological filter. Keep an eye on the ammonia levels, but ease up on the partial water changes because that can slow down your cycling process. Zeolite chips can help if your ammonia levels start getting dangerous. Hope this helps!


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[nessalang]

Almost forgot, I would feed a little on the lighter side, to help keep the nitrogenous wastes from building up too quickly.


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[wetfishies]

I had added a new filter with the last big water change. As for cycling, are my readings a normal process for a normal cycling reading. I just tested my cold tap water with my API freshwater master kit & the ammonia looks a little between 0 ppm & 0.25. the PH reads 7.2 maybe give a little. ni-TRITES are 0 ppm and the ni-TRATES are 0 ppm the HIGH range PH is a very light tan color so maybe it is less then the chart shows? of 7.4 or am I supposed to be testing my tap with a different test kit. I am just hoping that the water levels are the correct cycling stages. Thank You kindly

 

[wetfishies]

So no more partial water changes then correct? & when should I do my next one. All I should work on doing now is buying some API QuickStart? Should I add more of the ammonia neutralizer today, I have added some yesterday. Or should I not use that. Thank You for helping

 

[nessalang]

What would probably be best is a larger water change (30% or so), right before you add the bacterial starter. That way you can start with the lowest possible nitrate and ammonia levels which will help out your fish. Ease up on the ammonia remover, because that will be the food source for your bacteria that you are adding, and you need some ammonia to get your cycle going. Keep testing your water though to make sure nothing gets to any dangerous levels (ammonia and nitrite). Unless either of these gets to dangerous levels, don't do another partial water change until you are seeing only nitrate, with no more ammonia or nitrite (complete cycle). If you do have to do a partial water change part way through cycling, make sure to add a little more of the bacterial supplement. Keep feeding small amounts to your fish, just enough so they can get a couple of bites, since bigger meals and uneaten food will quickly do weird things to your water chemistry at this stage.


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[wetfishies]

I noticed that I only had one filter cartridge in, so I added the second one to the filter. I can not buy anything until Wednesday or Thursday for the water. I just tested the water & my levels are... Ammonia 1.0 ppm ni-TRITE 0.50 ppm & ni-TRATE 20 ppm PH is still 7.6 if more. So basically the water cycling`s that my poor fish are going through is not a normal cycle correct? At least until I buy the chemical

 

[ZcarFR-S]

It's still a normal cycle. All the quick start is going to do is increase the BB so it will cycle quicker. It's completely normal to experience this if you change your filters all together as so much if your bacteria lives there. In the future change only one cartridge at a time. If changing the filter altogether but the new cartridges in the tank so they can start building the bacteria on them.


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[wetfishies]

I have added a couple sacks of my old gravel, hoping that it will add what my water needs. I tested the water and now I have high ni-TRITES 2.0 ppm my ni-TRATES are 10 ppm Ammonia is 2.0 ppm and my PH is still 7.6 How long should I keep the sacks of gravel in & was that a good idea to do.